Packers hire new special teams coordinator, but real progress demands changes that go deeper than a single decision
Matt LaFleur chose Rich Bisaccia’s replacement.
Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur has made his fourth special teams coordinator hire, following Shawn Mennenga, Maurice Drayton, and Rich Bisaccia. Hopefully for the franchise, this one will be more successful. After days of interviews and planning, LaFleur has chosen Cameron Achord, who has four years of experience as a special teams coordinator on the New England Patriots under Bill Belichick.
It’s not clear if the Packers will hire or promote someone to be an assistant head coach, the other position Bisaccia occupied over the past couple of seasons.
LaFleur didn’t necessarily want to fire Bisaccia, and the veteran coach himself decided it was time to go in another direction. Now, it’s time to see if the next era will finally be the solution — and it certainly goes beyond the coordinator, with a cultural and organizational approach.
Cameron Achord is the choice
Achord has worked in the NFL since 2018, initially hired as an assistant special teams coach under Joe Judge on the New England Patriots. Previously, he had had college experience on offense and special teams. When Judge became the New York Giants head coach, Achord was promoted to special teams coordinator by Bill Belichick.
Achord led the Patriots to the first special teams unit in 2020 by Rick Gosselin’s annual special teams ranking. However, Achord wasn’t retained by Jerod Mayo in 2024, being replaced by Jeremy Springer. In the past two seasons, Achord was an assistant special teams coach for the Giants under Michael Ghobrial, but things will change under John Harbaugh in New York.
The Packers also interviewed Kyle Wilber, Tom McMahon, Sam Sewell, Devin Fitzsimmons, and Colt Anderson.
Packers’ track record with special teams
When Matt LaFleur hired his initial coaching staff with the Green Bay Packers in 2019, he had an opportunity to interview Darren Rizzi, a former Miami Dolphins special teams coordinator and assistant head coach. However, the Packers went to a cheaper route, letting Rizzi leave without a deal — he later signed with the New Orleans Saints, where he still coaches.
After a revolving door of special teams coordinators and costly mistakes, which included a playoff elimination because of a blocked punt in 2021, LaFleur and the Packers finally made the decision to hire a respected and high-paid coordinator. And that’s how Rich Bisaccia became the choice. In 2023, he was even promoted to assistant head coach in addition to his role as special teams coordinator.
When the Packers hired Bisaccia, he was coming off a great season. But it was not exactly a great season as a special teams coordinator. The Las Vegas Raiders were 11th on Rick Gosselin’s special teams rankings — and that’s great for what the Packers have endured, but not exactly a calling card for a coordinator to become the highest-paid one. It was his role as an interim head coach that increased his value.
In 2022, the Packers actually improved. They went from 32nd in 2021 to 17th in 2022 according to DVOA. But that’s happened mostly because Keisean Nixon was amazing as a returner in the second half of the season, getting a first-team All-Pro nod. The unit would go down to 31st in 2023, back up to 15th in 2024, and down to 21st in 2025. The volatility is normal on special teams, but the Packers were never better than average — and usually worse than that.
Green Bay lost two playoff games — 2023 to the San Francisco 49ers and this past season to the Chicago Bears — in large part because of missed kicks.
Over the past few years, general manager Brian Gutekunst has been more willing to sign special teams-specific players and the team has used more starters on teams, but the results haven’t been there yet. Whether it’s practice time, resources, or unit valuation in the building, the Packers need a full and honest evaluation to find a positive answer after decades of issues.
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